Sunwink Enters Target’s Expanding ‘Ingestible Beauty’ Set
Plant-based functional beverage brand Sunwink is aligning with Target to bring its products offline and into the retailer’s beauty and wellness department.
The female-founded, San Francisco-based company will see three SKUs of its Superfood Powder range — Cacao Clarity, Beauty Fruit Punch and Digestion Lemonade — enter 1,800 locations of country’s eighth-largest retail chain this month, as it looks to expand its offerings of “ingestible beauty” products.
“People across America are seeking the benefits of superfoods more than ever before and we are here to fuel the movement”, said Sunwink CEO and co-founder Eliza Ganesh in a press release. “We are making plant powered wellness as easy as possible for everyone.”
Sunwink has been around since 2019, first entering the market with its 5-SKU line of organic RTD sparkling tonics, and has steadily increased its brick-and-mortar footprint in the years since; according to the company 2021 was its largest growth year to date.
While the drinks have already landed at conventional grocery chains like Wegmans and Sprouts, the powders have mainly remained online until now. In partnering with Target — a collaboration that sparked from a direct message sent to the brand by the store’s Instagram account — Sunwink is joining a growing set that also includes wellness products from brands like Golde and Cocokind. As part of the move, Sunwink has cut the price of the powders from $34 to $26.99.
Spindrift Partners with Speakeasy Co. for Spiked Ecommerce Sales
Sparkling water maker Spindrift announced last week that its alcoholic seltzer line, Spindrift Spiked, is now available direct-to-consumer via ecommerce platform Speakeasy Co.
Founded in 2015, Speakeasy provides three-tier compliant, direct-to-consumer beverage alcohol sales platforms for brands, covering 31 states for spirits and 48 states for wine. Currently, Spindrift Spiked is only available to ship to consumers in California, but according to the brand’s website the company is working on opening up new states in the near future.
“We are beyond excited to welcome an incredible brand like Spindrift to the Speakeasy family,” said Speakeasy co-founder Josh Jacobs in a press release. “We believe this marks the beginning of a long and fruitful partnership.”
Spindrift Spiked launched last year into retail stores with a four SKU line of hard seltzers. Available in Pineapple, Mango, Lime and Half & Half (lemonade and tea), each 12 oz. can has a 4% ABV and contains 82 to 95 calories. Online, the drinks are now available in variety 12-packs for $36.
Last year, Spindrift founder and CEO Bill Creelman said the Spiked line served to expand the brand’s platform and allow it compete as a “total sparkling water company.” The ecommerce expansion comes as the brand’s nationwide sales continue to rise, with its non-alcoholic core line reporting a 39.7% dollar sales increase to $121.5 million in the two-week period ending January 1, according to Nielsen IQ data.
The ecommerce launch also helps Spindrift to tap into its online community, nicknamed Drifters, which the brand communicates with via a newsletter. Creelman told BevNET last year that the Spiked line was launched in response to strong consumer demand,
“As we continue to grow, it’s important to partner with companies like Speakeasy that offer a convenient way for our loyal community of Drifters to try our latest innovations online,” said Melissa Shum, a digital marketing manager at Spindrift, in the release. “We also love that the whole goal is to get our products to customers in the easiest, simplest way possible.”
DEFY, Southern Glazer’s Team Up
DEFY is the latest CBD-infused beverage to land a distribution deal with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, the company announced earlier this month.
Backed by Pro Football Hall of Famer Terrell Davis, DEFY has emerged as one of the early players in developing CBD beverages (as well as other products) aimed at helping support athletic recovery as a “performance wellness” brand. The company currently markets two flavored drinks – Boost, for pre-workout, and Recovery – as well as CBD-infused purified alkaline water.
“You’re only as strong as your team, and joining forces with a powerhouse like Southern Glazer’s takes DEFY to the next level,” said Davis in a press release.
Aligning with DEFY marks a further expansion of Southern Glazer’s presence within CBD beverages, after a year in which the distributor picked up several new partners across categories including energy (Kill Cliff) and sparkling drinks (CENTR, Mad Tasty). Sensing an opportunity, other liquor distributors – including Republic National (Daytrip) and Breakthrough (Recess) – have sought to claim their own piece of the market before their counterparts in beer can get involved, pending clarification of the ingredients’ legal status.
“This agreement emphasizes Southern Glazer’s forward thinking CBD initiatives,” said DEFY CEO Megan Bushell. “We are proud to be partnering with such an industry giant as we spread the word about the advantages of CBD together.”